XS ROCK

XS ROCK spoke with Pla Vinseiro, bassist for Crisix to discuss the band's latest release 'The Pizza E.P." and all things metal. Pla is a really cool dude to chat with and Crisix is one of the top bands working to keep the old-school thrash metal vibe alive.

Legendary vocalist Jeff Scott Soto sat down with XS ROCK and discussed his new album along with many aspects of his career and his thoughts on his work with previous artists like Yngwie Malmsteen and Journey.

About Jeff Scott Soto and his new album:

Using the downtime from his normally relentless touring activity due to the worldwide pandemic, renowned vocalist Jeff Scott Soto decided to create a very special album which pays tribute to some of the classic songs he has recorded over the course of his storied career. But, rather than simple re-records, he wanted to make the album something special, unique. So, he not only did re-record these songs with his musical friends Jorge Salan, Howie Simon (guitars), Leo Mancini (guitars), Tony Dickinson (bass), and Edu Cominato (drums), but he called in some of his fellow rock friends and vocalists to create a unique DUETS album. With the likes of Erik Martensson (Eclipse, W.E.T.), Dino Jelusick (Animal Drive, Dirty Shirley), Eric Martin (Mr. Big), Johnny Gioeli (Hardline), Deen Castronovo (Revolution Saints), Nathan James (Inglorious), Russell Allen (Symphony X), Renan Zonta (Electric Mob), Mats Leven (Candlemass, TSO), BJ (Spektra, SOTO), and Aliro Netto, this is an amazing international affair.

The tracklisting alone will surely make any JSS fan excited, much less hearing the final product. Where can you get such an amazing list of singers and songs all in the same place?

Jeff says, "It was a DREAM to cast these voices and I am so amped for you to hear the results…”

Jeff Scott Soto is a man that needs virtually no introduction to any discerning melodic rock fan. Jeff launched his career at a young age in tremendous fashion as the lead vocalist for Yngwie Malmsteen’s debut album, "Rising Force" and the sophomore album, “Marching Out”. That first step into the spotlight has led to a career that has seen Jeff play and work with an outstanding number of artists and genres. From the AOR of Eyes and Takara to the hard rock and Metal of Talisman, Axel Rudi Pell, Soul SirkUS, and of course, his time with the legendary Journey. Jeff has also maintained a solo career over the past decades, while also recently joining up with the progressive metal supergroup Sons of Apollo.

Tracklist:

Livin’ The Life (ROCK STAR) with Erik Martensson (Eclipse/W.E.T.) Don’t Let It End (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) - with Dino Jelusick (Animal Drive) Mysterious (TALISMAN) - with Eric Martin (Mr. Big) Believe in Me (JSS) - with Nathan James (Inglorious) Coming Home (SOUL SIRKUS) - with Deen Castronovo (Revolution Saints, Journey) I’ll Be Waiting (TALISMAN) - with Alirio Netto (Shaman, Queen Extravaganza) Callin’ All Girls (EYES) - with Russell Allen (Symphony X, Allen/Lande) Colour My XTC (TALISMAN) - with Renan Zonta (Electric Mob) Warrior (AXEL RUDI PELL) - with Johnny Gioeli (Hardline, Axel Rudi Pell) Holding On (JSS) - with BJ (SOTO, Spektra) Again 2 B Found (HUMANIMAL) - with Mats Leven (Candlemass)

Total length: 0.46.30

LINE-UP:
Jeff Scott Soto - Vocals and Keys
Edu Cominato - Drums
Tony Dickinson - Bass
Jorge Salan - Guitars
Howie Simon - Guitars
Leo Mancin - Guitars

https://www.facebook.com/JeffScottSoto/

https://www.instagram.com/jeffscottsotoofficial/

https://sotoworld.net/

Singer Jizzy Pearl opens up about his new Jizzy Pearl's Love/Hate album and the upcoming Quiet Riot album which will feature the return of Rudy Sarzo along with Frankie Banali's drum tracks recorded before his passing. Don't miss this interview as Jizzy dishes dirt on the record industry and what it's like to be a rock star in today's world.

Holy Mother has a brand new album coming out called "Face This Burn".  It's set to release on January 22nd, 2021.  I had the chance to set down for an interview with vocalist Mike Tirelli and discuss the band's new album, their history, and Mike's lengthy history in the music business. Holy Mother's Face The Burn is one of those albums that simply surprises and blows you away. Lead by the excellent vocals of former Riot V vocalist Mike Tirelli this album is simply outstanding.  The songwriting and structure are really, really good and it elevates the entire album.  This album has everything that you love and nothing to dislike. The sound quality and production are near perfect and the band really nails it song after song. You may think I'm exaggerating about how great this album is, but I'm not. This is is my first recommended "Must Hear" metal album of 2021! Don't sleep on this one! The entire album of Holy Mother's Face This Burn is any metalhead's dream come true.

Visit Holy Mother on their social media sites:

https://www.facebook.com/holymotherband

https://twitter.com/MikeTirelli

Metal fans have a new must-have item to add to their Christmas list this year with the release of Doro’s Magic Diamonds Box Set.  This incredible career-spanning set is almost too good to be true.  When I spoke with Doro recently she explained how she painstakingly hand-picked all of the tracks for this set.  It’s a Warlock/Doro fan’s dream come true.  While covering some of the greatest hits of her career she also gives us some rare unheard gems that are out of this world.  Filled with great live tracks and some truly fascinating cover songs and alternate versions of her songs.  Usually, with these box sets, I’m left wishing the artist would have added this track or that one to make it feel complete, but this set is damn near perfect.  This a great retrospective of Doro’s career thus far and shows that she has plenty of greatness left to come.  True metal fans should push this to the front of their music want list and soon as it releases on November 13th, 2020.  It’s one of the best things to happen for music fans in this crazy, tumultuous year.

Listen to our latest interview with the Queen Of Metal herself, Doro Pesch.

Back before COVID-19 shut down almost everything, we spoke with MSG singer Robin McAuley about the new album he recently recorded with Reb Beach, Jeff Pilson and Matt Starr called "Black Swan". The interview has been delayed being published until now because of audio issues that we were able to edit and correct from the recording of the original interview.

Former Dokken guitarist George Lynch has created a new band project called The Banishment which leans more towards electronica and industrial rock with Lynch's soulful, bluesy playing. Think Nine Inch Nails, KMFDM, etc with George Lynch's style infused throughout. We talked with George and the rest of the band about the new album and how this all came about.

Former Anthrax, Armored Saint vocalist, John Bush talks with XS ROCK to discuss their brilliant 2020 album release "Punching The Sky. John talks about his time in Anthrax as well...and we ask him if he would ever perform with them again.  

Recently, I sat down with Don Dokken to discuss his new album, appropriately named The Lost Songs: 1978-1981.  I've been a fan of Dokken for years and I was interested to talk with Don, not only about the new album, but also about his relationship with the members of the classic lineup of Dokken including George Lynch, Jeff Pilson and Wild Mick Brown.  Don told us all about The Lost Songs album, but also about the new upcoming Dokken album which is halfway finished. Listen to the interview below as we take a journey through the history of Dokken, from the early days to current day and Don's current paralysis in his arm which prevents him from playing guitar these days.

Don is best known as the co-host of VH1 Classic’s hit heavy metal talk show series, That Metal Show, where legends of rock hang out to discuss their past and current projects in front of a live studio audience. He also co-hosted Beer Money, a fast-paced, non-traditional sports quiz show airing on SNY (SportsNet NY) and is currently hosting his own rock/comedy hybrid That Jamieson Show on CompoundMedia.com.

Amongst his many accomplishments, Jamieson’s 3 stand-up CD's 'Live & Hilarious’, ‘Hell Bent For Laughter’ and ‘Communication Breakdown’ on Metal Blade Records all hit the Top 20 on iTunes and Top 10 on the Billboard comedy charts.

Don has a new album coming out on February 21st and we talked at length about the album and some of Don's most metal moments.

Comedian/actor/ writer Brian Posehn, who has appeared in several films including Rob Zombie's "The Devil's Rejects," starred in Comedy Central's "The Sarah Silverman Program," had a recurring role on the Emmy-winning TV series "The Big Bang Theory," has written 45-issues of Marvel Comics' "Deadpool" series, was an Executive Producer for the Netflix comedy sketch series "W/ Bob & David," and was most recently seen on "The Mandalorian" on Disney Plus, will see the release of his new comedy/metal album, Grandpa Metal, on February 14, 2020 (Megaforce Records).  We sat down and talked with Brian about the new album and his lifetime interest in Metal music.

Doro discusses her new U.S. tour dates as well as a surprise song collaboration that she's currently doing with another well-known metal singer.  Doro is called the Metal Queen and she rightfully deserves the title and the crown.  She is one of the most humble and down to earth performers in metal music that you're likely to meet and she absolutely lives for metal music and it's fans.

Reb Beach is a true journeyman of rock n' roll music.  You may know him as the guitarist from Winger, Whitesnake or from stints with Alice Cooper, Night Ranger, and Dokken. His skills and professionalism are highly sought after in the field of rock music. Reb along with Vocalist Robin McAuley (McAuley Schenker Group), bassist Jeff Pilson (Foreigner, The End Machine, ex-Dokken), and drummer Matt Starr (Ace Frehley, Mr. Big) have an exciting new project called "Black Swan".  Their debut album "Shake The World" will be released on February 14th, 2020. I had the chance to catch up with Reb and discuss the new project, as well as the latest with Whitesnake and Winger in my latest interview.

Recently Nitzer Ebb toured the U.S. as a two-piece with Bon Harris and Douglas McCarthy. Normally, the band tours as a four-piece unit but because of their inability to obtain visas, this tour was with the two core members.  I caught their show in Tampa Florida and it was an electrifying set.  I spoke with Bon Harris right before the show and he was happy to fill me in on the possibility of new Nitzer Ebb material, their tour and much, much more. 

David Ellefson, the legendary bassist for Megadeth, did some special tour dates with his all-star group Metal Allegiance.  Metal Allegiance’s core members are David Ellefson (Megadeth), Alex Skolnick (Testament), Mike Portnoy (Ex-Dream Theater) and Mark Menghi.  Guest vocalists have included Phil Anselmo, Randy Blythe, Troy Sanders, Chuck Billy, Mark Osegueda, Cristina Scabbia, Doug Pinnick, Jamey Jasta, Chris Jericho, Tim “Ripper” Owens, Alissa White-Gluz, Steve “Zetro” Souza, Max Cavalera and Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth”.  Their latest album,  Volume II: Power Drunk Majesty was released by Nuclear Blast Records and has received rave reviews. David was excited to tell us all about the album and the friendship that he has with the other guys in Metal Allegiance, as well as recent Megadeth recording news and how KISS inspired him to be a rock musician.

I sat down and spoke with Buckcherry's Josh Todd about the new album "Warpaint", what it's like to tour relentlessly and the stories behind his tattoos.

"You know what’s wrong with rock music? it’s not reckless and it’s not dangerous anymore."

Josh Todd - Buckcherry

LEAD SINGER

Just a few hours before their show, I sat down with Frankie Nardiello, A.K.A. Groovie Mann, vocalist for My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult.  It was almost 30 years since I had last seen the band perform.  I caught them early on in their career and have been a fan ever since.  Groovie is one of the nicest rock stars you're likely to ever meet.  He always stays after the shows and visits with fans and signs items.  Thrill Kill Kult are veterans of the industrial, electro-rock scene and have been incredibly influential on many other bands.  The band was one of the lucky few to be a part of the now-legendary Wax Trax Records! The band released a new album this year entitled "In The House Of Strange Affairs".  Groovie gave me the scoop on recording this album as well as his take on the music business, touring and so much more.

Often, I'm asked what it's like backstage when I get to interview the artists.  Many times the artists arrive at the venue with a very limited amount of time to get the equipment set up, do soundchecks and take the stage before they have to load everything up and start the process all over again.  This interview is a prime example of what it often sounds like backstage.  At various parts of the interview, you can hear the roadies doing a soundcheck at believe me it's quite loud. But sometimes, that's the only place and time that the artists can squeeze in an interview.  I've been a big fan of Tony's work in bands like Static-X, Ministry and more.  You'll probably never meet a more genuine, down to earth entertainer than Tony Campos.  Sorry for the background noise in this one but I hope you enjoy our interview with Tony!

I joined Wednesday 13 on his tour bus in Ybor City, Tampa Florida for a discussion that including the new album Necrophaze, his take on the music business, touring with Static-X, his musical influences and what the future holds for the band.  During our talk, you can hear us discussing chickens, which were all around the area, which is really strange as it's a heavily populated and trendy area for nightclubs, bars, and restaurants. Wednesday 13 is a really interesting and charismatic guy to interview.  I hope you enjoy listening to this interview as much as I enjoyed doing it.

I recently caught up with Virus from the band Dope on their current tour with Static-X.  I've been a longtime fan of the band and Virus' guitar work is some incredible stuff. If you've never seen the band live, definitely go check them out.  Dope has been kick ass and taking names for 20 years and they sound better than ever these days.  During our interview we discussed their tour, if their working on a new album yet and the current state of the rock music business.  Virus was a great interview and offers some great insight into what it's like to be a touring rock band in this day and age.

Interview With Monte Pittman Solo Artist And Guitarist For Prong, and yes...Madonna

Longtime Ministry guitarist discusses his new metal side project 3 Headed Snake in this interview.

The XS ROCK Best Metal Album Of The Year for 2019 is "Humanicide" by Death Angel. I had the opportunity to sit down with guitarist Rob Cavestany and discuss everything from the new album to his personal taste in music and so much more. Rob is an incredible guitarist and musician as well as a really fun interview. 

Don't forget to visit us at http://www.xsrock.com for all of the latest news, interviews, reviews and much more from your favorite rock, hard rock and metal artists.